Apparatus for cleaning fibrous material



March 6, 1928. 1,662,030

T. c. HAZARD APPARATUS FOR CLEANING FIBROUS MATERIAL Filed Dec. 2. 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 A; ATTORNEY.

March 6, 1928. I 1,662,030

T. c. HAZARD APPARATUS FOR CLEANING FIBROUS MATERIAL Filed Dec. 2, 1926; S SheetS-Sheet 2 Fig.2 8a EA INVENTOR A ATTORNEY.

March 6, 1928.

1,662,030 T. C. HAZARD APPARATUS FOR CLEANING FIBROUS MATERIAL 7 Filed Dec. 2, 1926 3 Sheets$ he et 3 INVENTOR:

A; ATTORN Y Patented Mar. 6, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THEODORE C. HAZARD, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO TAYLOR INSTRU- MENT COMPANIES, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR CLEANING FIBROUS MATERIAL.

Application filed December 2, 1926. Serial No. 152,290.

This invention relates to a novel apparatus for cleaning fibrous material and more particularly to the removal of wax present in cotton fabrics in order to put the goods into proper condition for dyeing or print- 1n %t is a general object of the invention to provide an apparatus for carrying out the cleaning operation in an economical manner.

A more particular object of the invention is an apparatus 'for automatically varying temperature and pressure conditions Within a kier in accordance with a definite temperature or pressure schedule.

Another specific object is an apparatus of the character referred to and means connected therewith for indicating the progress of the cleaning operation. I

For a full understanding of the principles of operation on which the invention is based, reference is made to the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 isa schematic representation of an arrangement embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional view on a larger scale of details indicated in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a curve diagram indicating the progress of the operation.

In the drawing 1 represents a cotton kier of usual construction and a circulating system therefor including an external boiler 2, fluid connections 3 and 4 and a pump 5. The boiler. is heated by means of a heat exchanger 5 the heating medium being preferably steam passing to the heat exchanger through a pipe 6 controlled by a. valve 7 which is actuated by a fluid pressure device 8, preferably of the diaphragm type as shown.

While the liquid in the kier, which may be sodium hydroxide or other like liquor, is circulated by the pump 5, steam under a pressure materially above atmospheric pressure is allowed to flow into the heat exchanger to heat the liquid passing through theboiler until the liquid at the top of the kier has reached a certain temperature. When this temperature has been reached, the steam is shut oil and the liquid in the kier is allowed to cool down, circulation being maintained throughout.

Thus the steam is periodically turned on and off to produce fluctuations of temperature in the kier accompanied by corresponding fluctuations of vapor pressure.

While, in order to produce corresponding changes of pressure, the range of temperature changes must lie above the boiling point of the wash liquid, there is a great deal of latitude in regard to the upper and lower limits.

In the particular arrangement the periodic operation of the valve 7 is effected through the medium of a heat-responsive bulb 9 disposed in the path of the circulating fluid, preferably in the connection 3 between the top of the kier and the boiler. The bulb 9 forms part of a regulator 10 of standard construction, including a pressure-responsive diaphragm 11 and a valve 12 controlling a compressed air conduit 13 for the operation of valve 7. The diaphragm 11 is in fluid connection with the bulb 9 through a capillary 9 and expands in proportion to the variations of temperature at the bulb. The expansive movement of the diaphragm 11 is transmitted through an adjustable translating mechanism 14 to the valve stem 12*. As indicated in Fig. 2, the valve 12 is normally open so that fluid can flow from inlet 13 to the outlet 13". When the diaphragm rises due to increase of the temperature at the bulb 9, the valve 12 is gradually closed. The precise point at which the valve 12 is fully closed may be determined bythe setting of the adjustable mechanism 14.

Thus, at the beginning of the operation,

or in general when the temperature at the bulb is below a predetermined point, the valve 12 is open. Compressed air then flows through the conduit 13 to the diaphragm 8 and keeps the same depressed against the tension of spring 8*. The valve 7 and the diaphragm 8are so related that the valve 7 is normally closed due to the action of spring 8 but is maintained in open position so long as the compressed air is permitted'to flow through the valve 12 to the diaphragm 8. In this particular arrangement, then, the valve 7 is maintained in open position and the steam allowed to flow into the boiler 2 so long as the temperature at the bulb 9 is low the predetermined value. The steam will, therefore, heat up the liquid circulating through the kier until the temperature at the bulb 9 has reached the upper limit set by the regulator.

When this tem erature is reached, the valve 12- is comp etely closed so that no more air can flow to the diaphragm. The air in the connection between the diaphragm 8 and the valve 12 leaks off through an artificial adjustable leak defined by a grooved screw 13.

\Vhen theair pressure above the diaphragm has diminished so that. spring 8 is able to overcome it, valve 7 will close thereby shutting oil the steam from the boiler 2. The liquid circulating through the kier will now cool off. The point to which the temperature may decrease is determined by various factors, principally, the size of the leak. As soon as the temperature begins to decrease, the valve 12 begins to open, allowing compressed air to flow to the diaphragm. The pressure therefore will build up at the diaphragm until its action upon the latter is sufficient to overcome the pressure of the steam upon the valve 7 tending to keep it closed and the pressure of the spring 8 also tending to keep the valve 7 closed. When this point has been reached, valve? will be thrown open and steam can again flow throu h the heat exchanger 5. The smaller the et ective leak opening has been made by the adjustment of screw 13", the quicker can the pressure build up at diaphragm 8, and the greater the leak opening is, the slower is the building up of the pressure. In the latter case more time is consumed in the building up and the temperature is allowed todrop to a lower point than in the former.

With an arrangement, such as described, and which has been referred to in particular only because it represents a standard ensemble of apparatus and instruments for controlling temperature conditions, the temperature was caused to vary between about 212-220 F. and 245255 F., accompanied by corresponding variations in the steam pressure, the number of cycles per hour helng about 22.

It is understood that with higher steam pressures different temperature and pressure changes may be effected. However, I consider temperature changes immediately above the boiling point and with the lower limit close to the boiling point as preferable.

A recorder 15 in cooperation with a bulb 16 adjacent to the bulb 9 and a bulb 17 at the bottom of the kier or in the connect-ion 4, is used for graphically recording the temperature conditions at the hottest and coldest points of the kier respectively.

The operation may be summed up as follows:

The change of vapor pressure at the top of the kier has the efiect to' force the liquid into and out of the material in the kier, which in the particular instance may be assumed to be cotton fabric. The periodical pressure action with intermittent release of the pressure is the equivalent of a mechanical action and is instrumental in accelerating or shortening the cleaning operation.

At the beginning of the operation the liquid in the kier is relatively cold. The valve 7 is open and steam flows through the heat exchanger. The liquid which is circulated through the kier and through the boiler is gradually heated up as seen by the curves 20 and 21 in Fig. 3, rising from the points a and b, respectively, wherein the curve 20 graphically represents the temperature changes at or near bulb 16, and 21' represents the changes at or near, bulb 17. The difference between corresponding points on the curves 20 and 21 represents the temperature drop or gradient from the top to the bottom of the kier.

\Vhile the curve 21 gradually rises to a maximum value and then becomes concentric with the center of the chart, indicating that at the bottom of the kier the temperature rises to a maximum value and then becomes substantially constant, the curve 20 indicates that after a certain temperature has been reached, the valve 7 is alternately closed and opened causing the temperature at the top of the kier to fluctuate between upper and lower values which gradually vary together and relatively to each other until finally both the upper and the lower values define concentric curves, the lower or inner one of which is substantially identical with the concentric portion a of the curve 21. The two concentric curves referred to indicate that a heat balance has been reached within the kier i. e., the dissipation of heat in the apparatus has become equal to the heat input.

It will be observed that the oscillations e denoting the fluctuations of temperature are closer together at the beginning of the operation than at a subsequent stage and that the intervals between them denoting the periods of time of the cyclic changes of temperature become progressively wider as the operation progresses.

I have found that the progress of the cleaning operation may be determined from the course of the curves. Depending upon the character of the goods treated, the time necessary for completing the cleaning operation varies within certain limits. The more loosely woven the goods, the shorter will be the time required for the operation and the more densely the goods are woven, the longer will the operation take. In all cases, the end of the operation is definitely correlated with the temperature curves and may be determined therefrom. Generally the operation is com leted when the heat balance has beenreac ed. In the case of a. loosely woven material, the rate of circulations is greater than in the case of more densely woven goods since the resistance to the How of the liquid is correspondingly smaller and vice versa. The period of time necessary to reach the heat balance is di rectly proportion 1 to the densen'ess of the ma erml.

The reason for the gradual widening of the spaces between the successive oscillations of the curve 20 is probably found in the fact that with the general rise of the temperature in the kier, the valve 12 controlling the compressed air conduit 13 opens progressively less and less so that it takes a.

longer time for the air pressure to build upover the diaphragm 11 controlling the steam valve 7, with the result that the time intervals between the closing and the subsequent opening of the valve become increasingly greater.

At any rate the record establishes a definite criterion of the progress and the course of the cleaning operation eliminating all guesswork or conjectures in regard thereto. The operation thus may be terminated at the proper stage of completion. Waste of time and energy is avoided.

The oscillations of temperature indicated by the curve 20 are accompanied by corresponding oscillations in the pressure in the vapor space of the kier. The rises and drops in temperature and pressure follow each other in immediate succession between the limits set by the regulator and the characteristics of the control apparatus in general, with the result that the rate of change per unit of time is a maximum, which, translated into practical significance, means that the washing action which is directly proportional to the change in pressure, is also a maximum. The circulation of the wash liquid through the fibres of the fabric, being induced by the alternate compression and release, thus becomes a maximum and cor- 'respondingly shortens the time of the washing operation.

In the foregoing I have described the invention in connection with certain apparatus adapted and interconnected to carry out the 1pfinciples of operation on which it is based.

owever, the invention in its broader aspect is by no means limited to the details of construction shown and described.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquidthrough the vessel, a supply of steam under superatmospheric pressure connected with the vessel, a valve for controlling the flow7 of steam to the vessel and means responsive to temperature. conditions in the vessel for periodically actuating the valve to maintain the liquid under a periodically fluctuating vaporpressure. I

2. Inapparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid through the vessel, including an external conduit interconnecting the bottom and the top of the vessel and a pump in the conduit, of a supply of steam under superatmospheric pressure connected to the said conduit, a valve for controlling the flow of steam and means responsive to temperature conditions in the vessel for periodically actuating the valve the vessel and means for controlling the periods of intermission, including means responsive to temperature conditions in the vessel.

4. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with. a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid through the vessel, means for intermittently heating the circulating liquid to produce a cyclically varying vapor pressure in the upper part of the vessel and means for controlling the pe riods of intermission, including means responsive to temperature conditions in the upper part of the vessel and means connected therewith for progressively lengthening the periods of intermission in inverse proportion to the decrease of the temperature gradient between the top and the bottom of the vessel.

5. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means. for circulating a liquid through the vessel, means for intermittently heating the circulating liquid to produce a cyclically varying vapor pressure in the upper part of the vessel and means for controlling the rate of variation of the vapor pressure.

6. In apparatus of thecharacter described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid through the vessel, means for intermittently heating the circulating liquid to produce a cyclically varying vapor pressure in the upper part of the vessel and means for indicating the progressive decrease of the temperature gradient between the top and the bottom of the vessel.

7. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid through the vessel, means for heating the circulating liquid to produce a vapor pressure at the top of the vessel, means for varying the vapor pressure, including means for intermittently making the heating means effective, and means responsive to the difference between the temperature at the top and the bottom respectively of the vessel for progressively changing the rate of variation in the pressure.

8. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid through the vessel, means for heating the circulating liquid, including a steam coil, a valve for controlling the flow of steam through the coil and means for intermittently closing and opening the valve, including means responslve to temperature conditions at the top of the vessel and to the temperature gradient between the top and the bottom of the vessel, for controlling the periods of intermission.

9. In apparatus of the character described the combination with a closed vessel, oi means for circulating a liquid therethrough, a supply of a heating fluld connected with the vessel to effect the heating of liquid circulating therethrough, valve mechanism for controlling the flow of heating fluid to the vessel and means responsive to conditions in the vessel for periodically actuating the valve to maintain the liquid under a periodically fluctuating vapor pressure.

10. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid therethrough, a supply of aheating fluid connected with the vessel to efl'ect the heating of liquid circulating therethrough, valve mechanism for controlling the flow of heating fluid to the vessel and means responsive to conditions in the vessel for periodically actuating the valve to maintain the liquid ,under a vapor pressure fluctuating periodically between a definite upper and a definite lower limit.

11. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid therethrough, a supply of a heating fluid connected with the vessel to eflect the heating of liquid circulating therethrough, valve mechanism for controlling the flow of heating fluid to the vessel and means responsive to temperature conditions within the vessel for periodically actuating the valve to maintain the liquid under a vapor pressure fluctuating periodically between a definite upper and a definite lower limit.

12. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid therethrough, a supply of a heating fluid connected with the vessel to effect the heating of liquid circulating therethrough, valve mechanism for controlling the flow of heating fluid to the vessel and means responsive to conditions within the vessel for periodically actuating the valve to maintain the liquid under a vapor pressure fluctuating periodically between an upper limit and a lower limit, including means for adjusting said responsive means to vary the upper and the lower limit relatively to each other.

13. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a closed vessel, of means for circulating a liquid therethrough, a supply of a heating fluid connected with the vessel to effect the heating of liquid circulating therethrough, valve mechanism for controlling the flow of heating fluid to the vessel and means responsive to conditions within the vessel for periodically actuating the valve to maintain the liquid under a vapor pressure fluctuating periodically between an upper limit and a lower limit, including means for varying the upper limit and independent means for varying the lower limit.

In testimony whereof I afiix my si nature.

THEODORE G. HAZ RD. 

